Prisoner not allowed to play D&D

[Dannyalcatraz]

I'll just add a few things:

In most prisons, anything related to gambling or potentially usable for gambling is considered contraband, including things like dice. Now, I've never seen someone play craps with D20s, but I'm sure someone with a lot of time on their hands could do so.

Yes, prisons DO have boardgames. However, in those cases, the games are usually kept in a centralized location, and the pieces- dice included- are checked when they're returned to the custodian.

IOW, it may still be possible to play a RPG in a prison...but you may not be able to have possession of the game books and dice in your cell. The game materials would be kept in the rec center or library, and that's where the games would probably be played.

As for the case in general?

While I can't agree with the expert's characterization of the game, his conclusions about the game's effect on the prison populace may be accurate. I know kids in middle school or HS who got picked on because of D&D, and prison in infinitely more cruel. People get shivved over shoes or toast...what happens if someone disses your PC?

And the fact of the matter is this- the man is in prison, and its up to him to prove his chosen activity is not disruptive to the prison society. He failed.

 

[jaerdaph]

People get shivved over shoes or toast...what happens if someone disses your PC?

Or your favorite edition!

Thanks, Danny - that was insightful and informative as always.

 

[Beginning of the End]

While it's clear from this - "promotes fantasy role playing, competitive hostility, violence, addictive escape behaviors, and possible gambling," - that the prison officials don't have a clue what D&D is really about

About the only word there that looks out of place is "addictive".

Fantasy roleplaying? Check.
Competitive hostility? Check.
Violence? Check.
Escapism? Check.
Possible gambling? Sure. That could happen.

 

[Blastin]

Well....Guess I'll weigh in on this. Background is a Role player for 30 years and I have worked in state level corrections for 5 years before going to the Federal system for last 2 years.

It all boils down to safety of both the staff and the inmates. If the prison can make an even remotely accurate case that a given activity might cause a safety or security risk than they can and will ban it and it will hold up in court.

Do I, as a long term gamer, believe that gaming has “been found to
promote competitive hostility, violence, and addictive
escape behavior,"? Nope...well...except for the last bit. But, do I believe that it could? Yup. And, as someone that has to be in contact with these guys every day and would like to go home at night safe and sound, I have no problems with the banning of any activity that even has a slight chance of causing problems.

Someone else posted a time line of what they thought might have led up to this issue, and I think they were pretty close. I'll make a guess here as well. Singer and his group played for 2 years and was under the radar of the SIS (special investigative services) team as the unit officers (the regular officers on singers unit on a daily basis) never saw a problem with the group. A snitch decides to turn them in. He could have done it out of spite, or just as likely, out of genuine concern for the game becoming a problem (remember the inmates, for the most part, don't want problems/safety issues either). The SIS guys looked into it, discovered an issue that they were never aware of before, or were under aware of, and decided that there might be an issue. On deciding that there might be an issue, they chose to side on staff/inmate safety and banned the game. Then it got to court and they had to defend the decision. The Officer was very good at expressing his issue with the overall group/problem, but when he had to relate it to role playing in particular, had to extract an argument from his nether sphincter

I do think that role playing in a prison setting has its place. If run/monitored by informed staff and directed towards positive goals it can be very useful as a means of rehabilitation. But being played unmonitored by inmates I think would be too great a risk.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Excellent points.

I know that therapists will use role play as a therapeutic tool so that persons can examine situations from a variety of points of view without being accusatory. Doing it in the context of D&D with its rigid alignment structure could even reinforce those positive lessons.

However, I don't see a therapist using D&D for that, even with its structure.

Still, a properly run campaign by a trustee or someone in prison outreach in controlled environments- again, the library or such- could do much the same.

All without putting the gaming material within the unsupervised hands of inmates who may wish to use the die for gambling, or tear up the books for use in weapon making or the storage of contraband.

 

[Derulbaskul]

(snip) And the fact of the matter is this- the man is in prison, and its up to him to prove his chosen activity is not disruptive to the prison society. He failed.

I can't give you XP it seems but wanted to thank you for yet another insightful post.

 

[Mournblade94]

The authorities are completely wrong and uninformed about the gaming hobby. That said, I will never support the rights of prisoners to any form of entertainment, except the art of breaking rocks. If the guys on death row, let him play one more game before he dies, other than that, prison is punishment.

Humane treatment is a right.

Entertainment is not a right.

You put yourself in there you deal.

 

[Mournblade94]

I do think that role playing in a prison setting has its place. If run/monitored by informed staff and directed towards positive goals it can be very useful as a means of rehabilitation. But being played unmonitored by inmates I think would be too great a risk.

The problem I have is that prison is a place for punishment. I think it fails as a rehabilitation entity. Our prisons need to tighten the noose not loosen it.

If prisoners are playing D&D, they are exercising their hobby for free on the taxpayer's dime. I do not think any hobby material should be allowed in prison. The prisoners are there for a reason.

 

[Voadam]

And the fact of the matter is this- the man is in prison, and its up to him to prove his chosen activity is not can not be disruptive to the prison society. He failed.

Fixed it for the rational basis legal standard.

 

[Starbuck_II]

So the prison used a slippery slope argument. The judges failed in their logic classes in college so they didn't realize that the argument had no merit.

So they used uncommon sense and supported it.

An argument is valid logically if you have to use a slippery slope argument.